Assess solo driving performace

You've refreshed the skills you need. You've predicted how well you'll do. And you've planned a route for the assessment. Now it's time to hop in the car and do it. Your supervisor or instructor can use the chart to assess your progress.

When you do the assessment, drive mostly without help. Because on your P's you'll be without your parent/supervisor or driving instructor anyway - make it as similar as possible to the real thing. Of course, your parent/supervisor is there to help you at any stage. Good luck!

 

P plate ready assessment

 

Go for a drive with your parent/supervisor and try combining different tasks. Ask them to check how well you do, based on the checklist provided in Table One. Afterwards, they can give you an honest rating on how well they think you did

Ask your parent/supervisor to watch for any other mistakes you might make. Then comment as you drive on any mistakes you think you make. Again, your parent/supervisor can give you an honest rating on how aware they think you were.

Use the tables below and record your results. Later you will compare them to how you thought you'd go.

 

Table One

Primary Task Secondary task Checklist Rating        

Drive for about five minutes towards a planned destination

Adjust radio or CD

Dip mirror for night driving

Move sun visor to shade the driver's side

Adjust air conditioning in vehicle

Clean the windscreeen

Speed is steady

Steering is steady

Combined actions are fluent

  

1 2 3 4 5

1 2 3 4 5

1 2 3 4 5

Change lanes, or

drive ahead or right at a multi lane roundabout, or

zipper or highway merge, or

come to a left lane that ends

Talk to passengers

Hear a mobile phone ring (prearranged)

Say random numbers between 1 & 21

Checks mirrors before indicating or braking

Indicates for longer than 2 seconds before steering or braking

Head checks before steering


1 2 3 4 5



1 2 3 4 5




1 2 3 4 5

Change of destination, move from the wrong to the right lane of traffic, get back on track, then enter a street on the right by first turning left, then find the tenth building on the opposite side of the street and park outside it

Describe events in the distance that could affect your safety

Judge another vehicle’s CAS*

Judge your vehicle's CAS*

Slow to a (given) speed without looking at speedometer

Driver appears calm and acts quickly when:

Facing an unfamiliar situation

The route, destination or task is changed

Traffic situations become more complex

 

 


1 2 3 4 5

 

1 2 3 4 5


1 2 3 4 5

* CAS means Crash Avoidance Space. In good conditions, this is equivalent to a minimum of 3 seconds travel space between you and any other car.

 

Table Two

Reflection                    Task Checklist   Rating        
Throughout the drive

Comment briefly on your mistakes as you make them

Seems aware of mistakes made

1 2 3 4 5
 At the end of the drive

Talk about the mistakes you made in more depth

Describes ways to fix the mistakes and explains the role that they played in the incidents

1 2 3 4 5